You're right! Even though in my opinion they get the job done for animation shorts like this (which are in fact animations trainings), they still look too rigid and at most parts just don't give the proper feel. I need to work on that, and it's quite hard :L
Thanks for taking the time to say this btw

Yeah, I don't think it's terrible or anything, it's just a little something that's been bugging me since ages in MaxOfS2D's animations and because they're so popular I was really starting to question my judgment.

Alright, I need to get this out of my system because I have no idea if this is just taste or a genuine point of criticism.
I'm not used to criticizing animation tho, so sorry if I'm unable to word myself properly.

This type of animation looks /too/ fluid for me. Especially in action scenes the movements lack "punch" because they aren't sharp and "to the point" enough. Like that Spy's thumbsup where the hand immediately and fluently goes into the highfive animation instead of staying there for a moment. That just makes it look artificial and scripted.
No matter how I look at it, it's like those times where friends and me would make fun of videogame character animations in ~2000.

I really wanna know if this is a taste thing/subjective/a personal issue or whether there's some merit to whatever is the professional term for what's bugging me.

The animation itself is good but it's lacking pauses.

All the movement is continuous, all of it. That just doesn't and can't happen.

What do you think?
Any kind of advice is nice to see :D
It was my wallpaper.
I'm posting this only to get some good advice for advanced artists.

- Use better fonts
- Use the improved physics pack
- Use the TIP texture pack, especially for gibs
- Mess with post-processing (Super DoF and Color Mod)
- Make sure your model's feet are actually on the ground and not just floating
- Always try your hardest to make sure things don't clip. The right arm and right ambassador are glaringly obvious.

To make poses seem more natural, picture yourself as the model. How would you stand? Where would your arms be positioned? Would your knees be bent at all? Do you really need to have your hand against the wall?

The photoshop on the eyelander does look nice, though. I don't really like the corners.

- Use better fonts
- Use the improved physics pack
- Use the TIP texture pack, especially for gibs
- Mess with post-processing (Super DoF and Color Mod)
- Make sure your model's feet are actually on the ground and not just floating
- Always try your hardest to make sure things don't clip. The right arm and right ambassador are glaringly obvious.

To make poses seem more natural, picture yourself as the model. How would you stand? Where would your arms be positioned? Would your knees be bent at all? Do you really need to have your hand against the wall?

The photoshop on the eyelander does look nice, though. I don't really like the corners.

Thanks! I already use improved physics pack, but i don't know anything about post-processing. ;/

Thanks! I already use improved physics pack, but i don't know anything about post-processing. ;/

Post-processing is extremely easy, honestly. Just takes a bit of tinkering.

Let's look at this sexy-ass pose I just finished a few minutes ago.

To create the darker atmosphere and the blurred background, I used two Post-Processing tools: Color Mod and Super DoF.

Color mod is the easier of the two. Here's the image un-edited.

Now let's open up our Color Mod window. The first slider we see is brightness. From what I garner, all this really does is apply a tinted overlay to the image you see.

You generally want to stay within the -.05 to .05 range, as any darker or lighter simply looks bad.

The next slider is contrast. Contrast also affects brightness, but in a different manner. Rather than overlaying a white or black tint, it either darkens or lightens the actual colors of the image.

Contrast is a lot more lenient than Brightness, and a lot more effective. You can generally go anywhere from .8 to 2 while still looking decent.

The last slider is color multiplier. This saturates or desaturates all the colors in the image. Useful for making images grayscaled or "cheerier."

For a grayscaled image, you want to keep the multiplier at around .25. Going all the way to 0 doesn't look as realistic. For a more vibrant image, going up to 1.25-1.4 will be enough.

Also, don't mess with the two color boxes. I've yet to see them used effectively.

Now, for the fun part. Super DoF. DoF stands for Depth of Field.

Before you start, make sure Multicore Rendering is disabled in the advanced video options. Gmod will crash if you use Super DoF with it on.

Now, there's a lot of sliders here. The two main ones you'll be working with are Blur Size and Focus Distance. Focus Distance is key, as it tells Gmod what you want to keep sharp.

When you bring up the Super DoF window, it'll be immediately apparent what is and isn't blurry.

This image is be adjusted for the Heavy's face as the focus point. Note how his head is still crisp and sharp, while the 2 on the wall is blurry.

This image is adjusted for those barrels in the background. Note how you seem to be seeing double of everything but the barrel. These parts will be what becomes blurry.

Just as another example, this is adjusted for the 2 on the wall. Again, note what is blurry and what isn't.

The Blur Size slider is useful as well.

Note how much blurrier the wall and the barrels are compared to the first image. You don't have to go crazy with blur, but it's always nice.

After you're done, click render. If you have a lower-end computer, it might freeze up for a moment. If it's higher-end, you'll see the parts you wanted blurry slowly circling about. When it's done, the window will pop back up.

For your completed image, use your camera, click the "5" button, and take a screenshot. The 5 button hides the Super DoF window for 5 seconds.

And, there you go. The other Post-Processing tools can be useful, but color mod and Super DoF are honestly all I use.

Just my two cents: you're better off just simply not using any post-processing in Gmod, save for the Super DoF. If you want to do color correction or bloom, Photoshop will allow much more control (though I'm a fan of MB Looks myself)

Just my two cents: you're better off just simply not using any post-processing in Gmod, save for the Super DoF. If you want to do color correction or bloom, Photoshop will allow much more control (though I'm a fan of MB Looks myself)

Makes sense, honestly. I don't use it because I don't have a clue how to use image editing programs beyond paint. GIMP even gives me trouble.

You know what's bad about being an artist AND being left-handed? This.

My left hand always presses those fucking buttons on the side so I have to set the orientation to Flipped Landscape so I can use it upside down and not have to worry about pressing them. I COULD turn the buttons off, but whatever.

I know that feel

not to mention my tablet is the size of an iphone, and everything is on the wrong side